![]() Gardela ends his research article on an inconclusive note: He states that it is too early for a definite judgement, but voices the hope that archaeology might “perhaps even sooner than we might expect” surprise us with new evidence for female Viking warriors.įortunately, as wargamers we don’t have to yield to the cautious rhetorics of academic safeguarding. Incidentally, this applies to warrior women throughout the ages – skimpy armour emphasising body shape belongs to the realm of fantasy! When the man lifted up his helmet and pushed it back, Hrolfr realized it was Queen Thornbjǫrg.”Ĭhain mail was worn over a thick padded garment, so the body shape would have been largely obscured. “Facing him stood a man in full armour and battle ready. This is illustrated by a passage from the Saga of King Hrolf Kraki: They would also have had similar armament. Freydís is depicted as using an axe, while women with swords feature in several sagas. ![]() Most of the weapons found in graves were knifes or spears. How would they have been equipped? Basically in the same way as men. Female figure with Sword from Hårby in Denmark. However, most experts concur that, if nothing else, women would have been fighting when the occasion demanded it, such as on expeditions or when defending their homes in the absence of men. Unfortunately (and in contrast to the remains of Scythian warrior women), there is no indication of battle damage (or no investigations have been conducted in this direction), so we can’t know if and how the deceased used those weapons. In a cautious and thoughtful overview of Scandinavian findings, archaeologist Leszek Gardela records several graves where weapons have been found buried besides women. Do grave goods tell us something about the people buried or do they rather expose the beliefs and customs of the undertakers? If we find a sword with a female corpse, does that mean the woman was a warrior or could it just have been a symbol for her status? Unfortunately, archaeology is a muddy business and often poses more questions than it delivers answers. To which extent they took part in combat however is still open to debate. Thanks to archaeology, we now know that Viking women had a much more active role in society than traditionally believed and that they participated in expeditions. Another warrior woman, Rusila, fought her brother Thrond for the throne of Norway and led her army to victory in a number of battles before succumbing to the Danish king.īut are those stories based on reality? Experts are still divided. In his History of the Danes, he tells of the women Hetha, Visna and Vebiorg, who fought for the Danish king Harald War-tooth at the battle of Brávellir. The most copious amount of examples has been collected by Saxo Grammaticus. William of Jumiège mentions women fighting among the Vikings in France. There is the ‘Red Maiden’ who commanded a fleet against her enemies in the 11th century. Warrior women also turn up in chronicles. Broche depicting a Valkyrie from 9th century Denmark. Another one, Freydís Eiríksdóttir, is featured in two sagas as the sister of Leif Erikson and as his companion on the expedition to Vinland, where she fought the fierce Skrælingjar. One of them was Queen Thornbjǫrg, who ruled Sweden and performed astonishing feats of arms. ![]() Her saga was reworked several times and she became a model for other warrior women. The oldest of them is Hervǫr, who led an army against a Hunnish invasion in the 4th or 5th century. Old Norse sagas and chronicles are full of warlike women. “There were once women in Denmark who dressed themselves to look like men and spent almost every minute cultivating soldier’s skills they did not want the sinews of their valour to lose tautness and be infected by self-indulgence.” – Saxo Grammaticus, History of the Danes, around 1200
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